Imperial Commando: Uprising
by James Harper
Summary: Four brothers, given the chance to escape the destiny they were bred for, and have a chance at a normal life. The story of the Chi Squad of Imperial Commandos and how Kal Skirata's clone smuggling network finally turns out.
1. Opening Crawl

**Dramatis Personae**

**Mandalorians**  
_Koje Sova (Cuy'val Dar Captain/Trainer of Chi Squad)_  
_Tima Sova (Wife of Koje Sova, Compound Sergeant)_  
_Baatir Sova (Biological Son of Koje Sova, Medic)_  
_Sydel Zloke (Adopted Daughter of Koje Sova, Baatir Sova's fiancée)_  
_Null ARC Trooper N-12/A'den Skirata (Adopted Son of Kal Skirata)_

**Imperials**  
_Darth Vader (Sith Lord, Supreme Imperial Commander)_  
_Aularian Ourebis (Grand Admiral)_  
_Cameline Shrill (Imperial Commander)_  
_Juna Sova (Imperial Captain, Sister of Koje Sova)_

**Chi Squad**  
_Nau'ur Kad ("To Forge A Sword", Squad Leader)_  
_Tracyn Bevii'ragir ("Fire Spear", Sniper)_  
_Susulur ("To Listen", Comms)_  
_Shukur ("To Crush", Demolitions)_

**Renegades**  
_Lyla Felis (Jedi Master)_  
_Duros Monard (Jedi Knight)_

**Imperial Commando: Uprising******

**The Clone Wars are over. A tentative peace has fallen throughout the Empire, though pockets of resistance still exist. As Emperor Palpatine rushes to consolidate his power throughout the Empire, he uses his Sith apprentice Darth Vader and the 501st Legion to crush his enemies wherever they may be found.******

**Chi Squad, a group of four clone commandos trained from birth by their Mandalorian Cuy'val Dar Captain, Risho Sova, are one of the few original Clone Commando units still in operation. After the discovery of Kal Skirata's traitorous actions, the Emperor decreed that all but the newest and most loyal Commando squads be broken up and reassigned. This caused more problems, however, and most of the Clone Commandos defected to Mandalore and Kal Skirata's ever growing Mandalorian Clan.******

**Now, with growing opposition on Mandalore and in the surrounding sectors, Emperor Palpatine has sent Darth Vader and the Star Garrison of the 501st out along the Hydian Way, to lay up in Taris, while Chi Squad takes their HWK-290 small cargo ship, the "Abiik Bes'Uliik" or Air Beast, on to Keldabe, the capital city of Mandalore, in an attempt to infiltrate Kal Skirata's Clan. Little do they know, they're already expected…**


	2. Preparations

**Chapter One**

The night was beginning to chase the sun over the horizon like some wounded creature, leaving blood stained clouds in its wake. Reds and oranges cut sanguine swaths across the sky as RC-1982, or Tracyn "Trace" Bevii'ragir to his brothers, lay on a tree branch twice as big around as he was, staring up at the changing colors of the sunset. The sky on Mandalore was unlike anything he'd ever seen. Sure, Coruscant had a nice sunset, but it was marred by smog that dimmed its colors. Felucia was a world unlike any other, but it was alien enough to be disconcerting. Kashyyk's sky had once been a standard blue sky, but it was mostly seen through the emerald canopy of its giant wroshyr trees, so it usually looked green, until the Empire had come and burned most of the larger Wookie cities to the ground.

The Mandalorian sky, though, was completely free of the industrial pollutants that clogged Coruscant, reds and blues the likes of which couldn't be captured by a painter's canvas or a scan of any kind, so close that it seemed as if Trace was floating through the air.

He took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. He would've liked to know what the air smelled like, but without his helmet on he wouldn't be in contact with his brothers. The comms in his helmet were encrypted to the point that not even the Imperial designers who had built the helmet could break into the squad channel without the proper access codes, which the squad set themselves. With his three brothers' voices in his ear for most of his life, he felt unbearably alone without his comms active.

Their voices were like a security measure that no bit of armor or ammo could replace. Breathing scentless purified air was a small price to pay.

"Daydreaming again, Trace?" came the voice of his brother, Susulur.

"No more than you are, Soos." Trace said, smiling behind the polarized visor. "Any calls for me?"

"Your three o'clock called and said she'd be late. Guess you'll have to push back your massage and spa appointment too."

Trace chuckled, and rolled back onto his armored stomach, settling his rifle into his shoulder. He blinked several times in rapid succession, adjusting the HUD in his visor and the scope of his rifle. His field of view was suddenly cast in a bluish hue, and the image of his brother filled his visor. Sitting in the cockpit of their ship, he looked quite at home surrounded by technology. Typing endless commands into his console, he was scanning the surrounding area for any signs of intelligent life. Aside from the native fauna, nothing had bothered them since they landed twenty four hours prior. The distinct lack of Mandalorian presence in their near area was bothering Trace. It was beginning to bother them all. For a people who were known for their martial skills, and situational awareness, they were surprisingly absent at the site of a high speed emergency landing by a light cargo ship broadcasting distress codes on every available channel.

"I see you." Trace whispered menacingly, as he laid his crosshairs over his brother's face.

"Usen'ye, bev'ika." Soos said, looking directly at Trace, and sticking his tongue out.

A snicker from Shukur whispered across the channel.

"I swear, Soos. You hung out with Corr too much back in the day. You've gone and picked up his homemade insults."

"Yeah, Shook. It'll be good to see him again. If he's about. Rest of the squad too." Soos said.

Trace sighed

"I saw Dar the other day. He's still not right." he said, softly. "We've been away from the hotshots for too long."

"I miss the days of the Republic. At least then we had a clear idea of who the bad guys were, and we could count on our vode to huukat'kama." Shook said. "This mission sucks. I can't believe we're supposed to-"

"At ease that noise, squad." the commanding voice of their brother and squad sergeant, Nau'ur Kad cut him off. "Incoming holotransmission. Open hands, boys."

"Calm down, Nau. We were just playing." Shook muttered softly, though just like the rest of the squad, he reached down and removed the palm sized holoprojector from his belt.

Trace watched as the ghostly blue image of an attractive female officer flickered into existence, seemingly standing on his palm.

"Captain Sova. Chi Squad present and accounted for." Nau said. "We've had no contact as of yet, but we're continually scanning the area."

"At ease, squad. How are you, ad'ike?" Captain Juna Sova said in her light Coruscanti accent.

"Just fine, ma'am." Nau said, ever businesslike.

"I could use a raise, Cap." Shook said, grinning behind his visor.

"Pretty as ever, Captain." Soos said.

"I'm staring at Soos' face in my sights. He's right. He's still ugly as sin." Trace said.

Captain Sova giggled, shaking her head as she tucked her hair behind an ear.

"Still no sign of the Mandalorians? I'd have thought they would've sent you a welcome wagon by now." she said.

"Same here, ma'am. We were thinking we'd go poke around Keldabe. See if we can't make some sort of contact." Nau said. "Just awaiting your go ahead."

Captain Sova nodded in their palms.

"Consider it given. Lord Vader wants something to report to the Emperor in two days time. Go have a night out on the town. Don't get too drunk. I hear that the Mandalorians drink some stuff that can degrease engines."

"Tihaar. You've actually gotta dilute it a bit or it'll eat through the metal, unless it's beskar." Soos said, nodding.

"Okay, okay. No drinking that stuff. I know you, Soos." she said. "What is the plan? Just so I can tell Lord Vader."

"We're going to try to play the refugee card. Since we actually stole the ship, we got fired upon enough to make it look like we defected. We're going to stab Trace and seek aid in town." Nau said. "Word of injured commandos should spread rather quickly."

"Are you okay with this plan, Trace?" Captain Sova asked.

"Overjoyed." Trace muttered.

"Alright, then, Commandos. Proceed as planned. Nau will do the stabbing. I love you boys, but I know how excited Soos and Shook get with sharp objects." she said. "Hukaat'gar shebse."

The squad went silent for a minute. It was rare for Captain Sova to speak Mando'a, the Mandalorian language. She was the sister of Koje Sova, their training Captain on Kamino. He'd been recruited by Jango Fett as one of his Cuy'val Dar clone trainers. It was just chance that had led Chi Squad to her command after being trained by her brother, though the Empire found it expedient to leave them in her command, since they functioned so well under a Mandalorian commander. Juna Sova had left the planet Mandalore at a young age to serve the Empire as an officer of her own accord. She'd spent enough time offworld, speaking Basic that her Kyrimorut accent had all but been replaced with Coruscanti. Until she spoke the rare word of Mando'a.

"Understood, ma'am. We'll try to get our backsides home in one piece." Nau'ur said.

"Good. Tell my brother I said hello, if you see him. Sova out." she said, and the blue image in their palms faded away.

The squad, in all their different places, replaced their holoprojectors on their belts.

"You heard the ladies, vode. Let's get our brother stabbed and get into town." Nau said.

"Wonderful." muttered Trace as he rolled out of the tree to hit the ground hard, already moving towards the ship.

His dismay was only met by his brother's laughter.

**Key**  
**Chi Squad**  
Squad Leader: Nau'ur "Nau" Kad - His name means "To Forge A Sword", because he's the forge against which his squad will be sharpened into a weapon. He's the strongest of the bunch.  
Sniper: Tracyn "Trace" Bevii'ragir – His name means "Fire Spear" for obvious reasons  
Comms/Intelligence: Susulur "Soos" – His name means "To Listen"  
Demolitions: Shukur "Shook" – His name means "To Crush" 

**Mando'a Translation**  
_**Usen'ye, bev'ika**_**:** Usen'ye is the most severe way to tell someone to go away that the Mandalorians have. It's comparable to "Fuck off, or else". Bev'ika, is the diminutive form of "Bevii'Ragir", which is spear, so basically it's "little spear", as in "You have one."  
_**vode**_**:** The plural form of vod, which means brother.  
_**huukat'kama**_**:** Means watch my backside, literally translated it's "watch backside"  
_**Ad'ike**_**:** The plural and diminutive form of son. Ad'ike means little sons.  
_**Hukaat'gar shebse**_**:** Means "watch your ass". It's more of a command than a concept


	3. Vode An, Brothers All

**Chapter Two**

"Are Imperial Credits any good here?" Trace heard Nau's voice outside the exam room as he sat in the exam chair, his upper body armor stacked neatly in the corner, and the top half of his bodysuit peeled down to reveal the jagged cut that now stretched from his the front of his ribs to the back, in the space left open by his armor.

"Of course. We're Mando'ade, verd'ika. As long as your credits clear, we don't care who they're from." another voice said.

The room's door was pushed gently open, and a young man with a shaved head and a full blonde beard walked into the room. He wore black scrub clothes, and a wide smile, and carried a suture tray in his hands. A close fitting leather holster rode low on his thigh, a DE-10 blaster resting inside.

"So. I hear you've been stabbed." the man said, smiling.

Trace nodded, and pointed with his right hand, since the left one was busy holding a blood soaked towel to his side.

"There." he wheezed.

"Good. Good." the man said, sitting down on the rolling stool next to the exam chair. "Well, I'm Baatir, and I'll be stitching you up today. The nurse out front said it wasn't too bad. Let's have a look."

Nau stepped inside the room, and Shook and Soos stood guard at the door, leaning in, watching eagerly. Trace gently pulled the towel away, resulting in a fresh spray of blood that spattered across Baatir's chest.

"Oh, come on, verd'ika. That's barely a scratch. Your ribs stopped it from penetrating." Baatir said, setting the suture kit on the counter next to him.

He pulled it open, and removed the sterile gloves inside, sliding them onto his hands. He pulled out a bottle of reddish liquid and squirted it on the wound without warning, eliciting a gasp of pain from Trace.

"Shabla doctor!" he grunted.

Baatir chuckled.

"Oh, calm down. Don't be such a little girl. It's just the antiseptic." he said. "And I'm not a doctor. Just a medic."

Trace gritted his teeth and took as deep a breath as he could. He focused on the pain, and let it wash through his mind. Ignoring the pain just made it worse, and so he embraced it. He took the pain in, accepted it, made it a part of himself, and let it raise his anger, which gave him strength.

Baatir threaded a curved needle with a thin black thread, and using two pair of tweezers, he began sewing the wound closed. Trace just concentrated on the pain.

"So, how is it that four Imperial Commandos get stranded all the way out here on Mandalore, in a stolen ship?" Baatir asked, not looking up from his work.

"We had to extract quickly. Too quick to wait on a ride. Had to find our own." Nau said nonchalantly.

Baatir nodded.

"And which one of you stabbed this or'dinii?"

Before Trace knew it, Nau's DC-17 blaster pistol was pressed to Baatir's head, forcing his neck to bend at an awkward angle.

"What did you say?"

Baatir smiled, his hands still working.

"I'm betting it was you." Baatir said. "I'm a medic, you di'kutla commando, and on top of that I'm a Mandalorian. I know what a real stab wound looks like. I've given enough of them and patched up enough of them to know the difference."

Baatir shook his head.

"Look, it's really hard to stitch up your brother with my neck bent over like this, so if you want me to keep sewing, put your DC away."

Nau didn't move for several long moments. He slowly removed the pistol, and slid it back into the holster hanging from his belt.

"Fine." he said tightly.

Baatir, his neck back at a normal angle, shook his head.

"I swear. Koj'buir told me you guys were smarter than this." Baatir said. "You guys are supposed to be the best that the Imperial Army has to offer."

Trace gasped in surprise, and then groaned in pain. Baatir put a hand on his chest.

"Be still, vod'ika. You keep moving and you'll have an ugly scar rather than the pretty one I'm trying to give you." he said.

"How do you know Koje Sova?" Nau asked, stone faced.

Baatir rolled his eyes.

"Well, obviously he's my father." he said, glancing up at Trace. "Shab this guy's slow. Who put him in charge?"

"Koj'buir." Shook said from the doorway, chuckling.

Baatir laughed.

"Figures." he said, still stitching. "Look, you di'kutse aren't a surprise to anybody here. Skirata and his clan, all eleventy bajillion of them, are offworld already. The man isn't as stupid as the Empire seems to think. Even before the Emperor got word of his betrayal, and his plans to set up an underground network of clone smugglers, Skirata moved his people elsewhere."

"Where'd they go?" Soos asked, from the doorway.

"Ke'sush, you two." Nau said, sending both the commandos outside the room to the position of attention.

"No idea. Last I heard, there was a safe drop point somewhere in the area of Illum. Also heard a rumor of one near Mustafar. Illum used to be a Jedi heavy world, and so the grasp of the Emperor seems a little lighter near there." Baatir said, trading one set of tweezers for a pair of scissors, which he used to snip the suture thread. "I hear that Vader guy won't go anywhere near Mustafar. Nobody knows why."

He set his tweezers and scissors down, and applied a fresh bacta soaked bandage to the wound.

"Keep that on for a few days, and then have one of your expert surgeon brothers take the stitches out." He said, nodding to Trace.

Trace sat up, and groaned, but the pain in his side certainly had lessened. Bacta was a wonderful thing.

"Shook?" he asked, nodding towards his armor.

"Is your ship flyable?" Baatir asked.

Shook stepped into the room, and grabbed the armor as Baatir and Nau helped him slip the upper half of his black bodysuit on.

"Barely. We'd be lucky to break atmo." Nau said grimly, helping Soos strap the armor plates to Trace's body. "We won't be going anywhere for a while."

Baatir nodded.

"Well, then I guess you'll be coming home with me in the morning."

All four commandos turned to look at him.

"Excuse me?"

Baatir shrugged.

"Do you really think I'd live through the day if I turned a blind eye when Koje Sova's sons came looking for help?" he asked. "Come on. Be serious. Even if you're here to spy on us and betray your father, I've still gotta give you the benefit of the doubt. And your armor marks you as Sova Clan, even if you don't have our symbol."

He pointed to the strip of Aurebesh script running in a vertical red stripe from the crown of Nau's helmet, down his chest, his ab plate, down his thigh plate, and around both gauntlets.

"Fallen comrades, right?" he asked.

Nau stiffened, but nodded.

"Every clone commando lost since Geonosis."

"All Sova armor has it. Our way of working out Aay'han. Keeping them close, though they're so far away." Baatir said, somewhat sadly. "You read them every day, don't you?"

Nau nodded.

"We do too." Baatir said, though he brightened quickly. "You'll come to the compound tonight after I get off work. Have dinner. See Koj'buir. I'll let him send you packing."

Trace looked up at Nau, who shrugged.

"Fine. When do you finish here?"

Baatir smiled.

"Oh, I just got started. Night shift doesn't end for another twelve hours."

"I don't suppose there's someplace to get something to eat, is there?" Soos asked from the doorway.

"If you just need to wake up and get some food, the tapcaf is down in the basement. Oyubaat is down the street, to the south. Can't miss it. Big noisy place. Someone probably bleeding out front."

"Sounds like fun." Shook said, as he helped Trace to his feet.

"Take a load off when you get there. Tell them I sent you. Folks will leave you alone."

Shook scowled, a rare expression on his face.

"We don't need your reputation to protect us. We can handle ourselves." he said.

Baatir laughed, a high pitched sound.

"You misunderstand me, vod'ika. We're not a popular group here on Mandalore at the moment, the Sovas. After news leaked out that Skirata had done what he'd done, our close ties with his clan made us somewhat suspicious. Mando'ade value freedom, and association with known or suspected traitors in the Emperor's galaxy isn't the best way to stay free." he said. "They'll leave you alone because we're disliked, and you should know it before you go walking into a situation that might get you killed. It's not like you aren't conspicuous enough in that armor. Your Aay'han stripes will mark you as ours, and potential traitors to the Empire."

"Fair enough." Nau said, cutting off any reply that might be forthcoming from Shook. "We'll meet you there when you're done."

Baatir nodded in satisfaction.

"Good. Try the Ne'tra Gal. It'll knock you right out of your boots."

[b]Key:[/b]

_Mando'ade_: Literally translated it's "Children of Mandalore" (the planet).

_Verd'ika_: The diminutive form of "verd", which means "soldier or warrior". The medic is implying that Nau isn't a full warrior.

_Shabla_: From the word "shab", which is basically "fuck". Shabla means "fucked up".

_O__r'dinii_: Complete Lunatic

_Di'kutla_: Foolish or Idiotic

_Di'kutse_: Fools or Idiots

_Koj'buir_: Buir is the word for parent (mother or father), and Koj'buir is Koje (Baatir's father) and Buir put together. It's an affectionate term, to pair a parent's name and buir.

_Ke'sush_: Obviously it's the command for attention.

_Aay'han_: It's a uniquely Mandalorian emotion. A mix of contentment and sorrow when surrounded by loved ones, while commemorating the dead, your fallen comrades.

_Ne'tra Gal_: Mandalorian Black Ale


	4. Home, Sweet Home

**Chapter Three**

"Ti'buir doesn't allow buy'ce to be worn in the house, so you'll have to store yours in the mud room." Baatir said, coasting his speeder truck to a stop outside the dome shaped structure in front of him. "She says that it's rude to wear your helmet inside. Might make people think you don't trust them enough to show them your face."

Trace nodded in the back seat of the speeder. Nau sat in the front passenger seat, next to Baatir, who wore armor nearly identical to his father's, though it was green and black, where Koje's was red and black. Running down the face of his helmet, his right chest plate, and his ab plate, in bright green, was a column of names in Mando'a script. He wore a deep emerald hooded cloak that was frayed around the lower edges. His helmet's faceplate was different from any that the commando's had ever seen, though. Lacking the distinctive T shaped visor that was a markedly Mandalorian feature, it had an armored surgeon's mask across the lower portion, leaving only a squared and angled visor visible. He'd said that a lot of Mandalorians were experimenting with different visor configurations.

His brothers had managed to manhandle Trace into a reclining position in the back seat. Shook and Soos sat back to back in the bed of the speeder, in the gunner seats. As they began unbuckling their safety harnesses, Baatir raised a hand.

"Hang on." he said, twitching his jaw and activating the comm link in his ear.

"Go." he said, pausing for a moment. "That's clear. We'll be waiting."

He put the truck back into gear and jammed his foot down on the accelerator pedal, shooting into the building.

"Koj'buir is coming in. Coming in hot, as always. We've gotta get these bay doors shut before he flies over or he'll rip the whole place up out of the ground." Baatir said.

"What?" Trace asked, sitting up slowly.

"His ship is so big that the ion engines can knock entire buildings over with their downwash." Baatir said as he got out of the truck.

He dashed for the doors in full armor, not even bothering to shut down the vehicle. Nau climbed out and snapped his fingers at Soos and Shook in the gunner seats.

"Let's go. Gotta close the doors or we'll be red smears on the ground." he said, his brothers leaping down to the ground quickly as Trace slid slowly out of the truck.

The three uninjured clones moved over to where Baatir was shoving a huge durasteel door along its tracks, his face red with effort. Nau went over to help him, and Soos and Shook took the other door, shoving with all their might. The doors moved slowly closer together, as Trace's helmet picked up the faint sounds of a MandalMotors Heavy Cargo Transport ship. It was approaching rapidly, and it sounded as if the pilot, presumably Koje Sova, were bringing it in straight from the atmosphere without spilling off any speed. The low rumble of its engines vibrated the ground beneath their feet, causing dust to slip off of any level surface in the building. As the doors creaked shut, Trace moved gingerly over to where his brothers stood, helping Baatir lower the hand cranked locking bars into place so that the doors couldn't move. The five armored men moved over to the transparisteel window as the rumble grew louder, making the walls vibrate audibly.

Trace's helmet's sound dampeners activated, keeping the noise at a low level, but nothing in his armor could prepare him for the sheer bone shaking power of the ship's engines. A Laat/I would vibrate your body, and it's high pitched whine resonated with your bones, but the ship that passed overhead, momentarily blotting out the rising sun, was so much louder that even with the noise dampeners active, Trace's eardrums thrummed against the inside of his head.

As the massive shadow swept across the farm, Trace saw Shook and Baatir moving their hands at rapid speed. He recognized the shorthand version of Mando'a, used when silence was necessary or with the deaf.

"Ori, ibic." Shook signed. [i]"Big, this."[/i]

"Ori ori. Ibic ori prudii darasuum." Baatir agreed. [i]"Very big. This big shadow [is] eternal."[/i]

"Oya." Shook replied, and even though he wore his helmet, Trace could tell he was grinning. [i]"Hell yeah."[/i]

Trace watched as the ship's forward wing tip came into view. It cruised overhead slowly, turning as it did so. The roar from the engines made Trace's teeth vibrate in his jaw, and he had to keep his mouth open to keep from biting his tongue. As the rest of the ship came into view, Trace got a glimpse of the enormity of the thing for the first time. The massive flat faced ship was relatively wide, with a big viewscreen on the high set bridge. Sure enough, as it turned in a slow arc, Trace saw that there were no trees in the general area of the ship's footprint. They must've all been ripped down the first few times Koje Sova landed the craft. The ship rotated over the farm, and slowly settled into place, creaking as it's wing edges touched the ground, holding the fuselage just three meters off the ground. The building that they stood in rested under one massive wing, and the bunker style farmhouse sat beneath the other.

The engines began to wind down, and the cargo ramp began to lower with a hydraulic whir, though nobody could hear it yet. Baatir motioned for the commandos to help him open the doors back up, and the metal barriers slid aside without too much protest. They exited the garage building and began walking towards the lowering ramp, which could now be heard grinding downwards. Baatir led them to the ship, and they watched as a small landspeeder zipped past, carrying five fully armored Mandalorians, all laughing and yelling. A few of them waved to Baatir, who returned the gesture, but they didn't stop.

At the top of the cargo ramp stood a tall Mandalorian in red and black armor, just like Baatir's, though his helmet had a traditional T-visor. He stood with his hands on his hips, his hood pulled up over the top of his helmet, twin DE-10 blasters on his belt. Next to him was a Mandalorian woman, in armor that matched Baatir's exactly, down to the medic mask helmet, though her hood was pushed back off of her helmet.

"Well, well, well. Someone followed you home, ad'ika?" Koje Sova's rich, deep voice boomed from the impassive helmet, though all his sons could tell he was smiling.

He gestured to the woman next to him, and she dashed down the ramp, her boots thudding against the metal deck. She leapt into Baatir's waiting arms, and collided hard with him, knocking him back several steps, pressing her helmet's forehead to his in a Kov'nyn, which was the only way to kiss in full armor.

"Yeah. Came into the hospital last night after the red one stabbed the green one." Baatir called to his father, before he began carrying the woman off towards the house. "They say you know them."

The commandos stood at attention, out of habit as Koje began walking down the ramp.

"Oh, yes. I know these boys." he said, pushing his hood back and removing his helmet. "I'd know them anywhere."

He grinned, his white teeth contrasting heavily with his dark brown skin. There was more gray in his goatee than Trace remembered from Kamino, and his face had a few more wrinkles, but it was the same man. He still walked with the confident swagger of someone who knew he was the best around, still smiled his crooked smile, still rubbed his skinless scalp as if smoothing his hair down.

"Captain Sova. Chi Squad reporting." Nau said, his voice neutral behind his helmet.

He and Sova had a rocky relationship. Nau aspired to be a lot like Koje, but could also see the man's flaws. He tried to take the ideal Mandalorian that Koje tried to be most of the time, and form himself through sheer force of will into that man. Most of the time he succeeded, but he was too much like Koje sometimes, and it made him cold and distant.

"So you are. At ease, boys. What are you doing in my neck of the galaxy, Nau'ur Kad?" Koje asked, placing a hand on the red and black armored commando's shoulder.

The squad relaxed into an "at ease" stance, hands clasped behind their backs, feet shoulder width apart, all of them turning their mirrored visors to face Koje. Shook's voice came over the squad channel, only audible inside their four helmets.

"Maybe we should just tell him. He'll understand." Shook said.

"No way, vod'ika. That's the quickest way to a shebse kicking." Soos replied, unmoving, the only outside indication that he was speaking being the rise and fall of his chest.

Trace sighed.

"He already knows the truth. He's not an idiot. Shab. Baatir called us on our osik two minutes after meeting him."

"Usen'ye." Nau said, shutting them up before he switched to audible speech. "We were attacked, actually. We were over on Taris when our mission went bad, and we had to acquire transport in the field. Our ship was damaged, and Mandalore, fortunately, was the closest planet. Trace was injured, and we had to seek help in Keldabe. Luckily we met Baatir and he brought us back here."

Koje shook his head, and sighed.

"Don't be silly, Nau. The Emperor wants Kal Skirata and his clan of traitors, and he's sent you here to find out what I know." he said. "For someone who's trained in deception and infiltration, you still can't lie for osik."

"Told you." Trace muttered.

"No need to lie, Captain. Not when the truth will do just fine." Nau said calmly.

"Okay, Nau. If you say so." Koje said, moving towards the house. "Come on. I've been burning hard for the last thirty two hours, and I'm hungry. Let's go see what my wife has cooking for breakfast."

The commandos fell into step behind him, and for a moment, Trace could almost hear the click of Kamino's durasteel plates beneath their boots, feel the vibrations in his bones from the constant storms outside the facility's walls. He had to blink a few times to shake the memory off. As they crossed the field, Nau spoke in even tones, his voice as measured as his strides.

"What have you been up to, Sir? Looks like a long haul vessel you've got."

"It is. My crew and I have been running cargo along the Hydian Way, all the way from Polis Massa up to Bonadan. Stops in Eriadu, Malastare, Denon and Corellia, Bogden and Telos as well." Koje said, strolling along.

"No stops on Coruscant?" Nau asked.

Koje laughed, a short bark of a sound.

"Are you joking? The Emperor couldn't pay me enough credits to put me on that Imperial Dar'yaim. I like breathing too much."

"Baatir told us that things are tense for you on Mandalore." Nau said.

"Things are tense, yes, but there's nothing anybody can do about it. The Emperor still doesn't have enough of a grip on the galaxy to try and bring Mandalore under his control. He'd be in for the fight of his life, and even with all his resources, he knows that the possibility of defeat is all too real." Koje said. "He doesn't like that Kal is steadily draining his Imperial Army of her most experienced troops, but there's not a whole lot he can do about it. The Mandalorian people here are waiting for the other boot to fall, and they're afraid it's going to be on them. The Imperial Garrison in Keldabe, and don't think I haven't noticed that you didn't go there, is a constant reminder of the Empire's presence, and so they overtly blame Kal, and they implicitly blame anyone associated with him."

"Why doesn't the Mand'alor do anything about it? I'd have thought that he'd be more actively involved with a situation as explosive as Skirata."

Koje shrugged.

"Shysa is more of a "hands off" type of Mand'alor. We make our credits however we see fit, and as long as it's not bad for Mandalore, we're left alone." he said, as they approached the doorway of the house. "Things get difficult, we deal with it. It's what we do. Who we are. You know this."

Trace nodded to himself. The man was right. The commandos were fighting a very fluid battle against an even more fluid enemy, with their covert mission. It was going to be difficult to do any damage, covert or otherwise to the actual Mandalorians they were hunting.

"What are you thinking, Trace?" Koje asked, snapping him back to reality.

"Hm? Oh, nothing important." he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "How did you know I was thinking?"

Koje pushed the door to the mud room open, and the commandos filed in. It was a long narrow room with benches on one wall, and locker style cubby holes on the other.

"You always hold your head a little bit to the left when you're deep in thought." he said, smiling. "Alright, ad'ikase. Buckets off."

He took his helmet and placed it on a high shelf inside the room, next to a slightly smaller helmet, obviously meant for a woman, that matched his. Next was Baatir's medic helmet, and again, a smaller helmet that matched. Koje began stripping out of his armor, removing his gauntlets first, and then the vest that held his chest and ab plates. He placed them in the cubby at the end, and motioned for the commandos to do the same.

"Mar'e, husband! It's about time you got home." a voice called from deeper within the house.

As he removed his helmet, Trace took a deep breath, testing the scent of the house. His ribs complained, but it was totally worth it. Without his helmet's air filters, a shockingly strong mix of scents practically slapped him in the face. The first thing he smelled was the stew bubbling on the stove. Spicy to the point that just the scent made his nose twitch, it was the most wonderful thing he'd ever smelled. It definitely beat out the scentless, texture less, tasteless ration cubes they normally ate in the field.

"Your daughter drives too slowly. Otherwise we'd have been here yesterday." Koje said.

"I suppose that's just because she has a preference for not burning up during reentry." said the voice, coming closer.

An attractive woman in her forties, with long wavy blonde hair and a bright smile, stepped into view. She wore a pair of simple gray cargo pants, and a black undershirt. Her bare feet featured bright blue painted toenails and a ring on both big toes. She walked up to Koje and stretched her muscular arms around his neck, pulling the tall Mandalorian down for a kiss.

"I've missed you, cyar'ika." he said softly as they pulled apart.

"Me too." she said, smiling. "I see you've brought home some strays."

Koje turned and gestured to the commandos.

"Chi squad. Nau'ur Baatir, Tracyn Bevii'ragir, Susulur, and Shukur. Nau, Trace, Soos, and Shook." he said. "They're in need of some help."

"Ah. Okay. Okay. So you boys are the infamous Chi Squad, huh?" she asked, moving over to stand in front of Nau. "I've heard a lot about you, commandos."

"Ma'am." Nau said with a curt nod.

"Su'cuy." Trace nodded as well.

"Hi." Soos gave a small wave.

"Buir." Shook grinned at her.

"Buir. I don't know about that. We've only just met." she said, glancing at her husband.

Shook shrugged.

"We heard enough about you in training. You seem like family anyway."

"Fair enough, verd'ika. If we're family you should be in the kitchen. Haili cetare." Tima ordered. "Bowls are in the cupboard there, and spoons are in the drawer. That goes for all of you. Go."

She pointed at the kitchen, one finger extended, obviously not requesting anything. Koje grinned as he walked past her, making his way into the kitchen. The commandos followed suit. They found a large commercial sized kitchen, with wide open space, and a massive center island that served as a dining table. High stools sat all around the island, two of them occupied by Baatir and the woman whom he'd met at the ship. She had stripped out of her armor vest, and had removed her flight suit to the waist, tying her arms around in a belt. She sat close to Baatir, one of his hands on her waist. She had long dark hair, dark eyes, and a sort of crooked smile, like her mother.

"Hi, guys." he said, grinning as the woman whispered something into his ear.

Trace couldn't help but feel a momentary pang of jealousy for the young man. He was doing useful work, as were the commandos, but he also managed to have a family, and a significant other. It was something that Trace knew he'd never have, and it made him want it all the more.

"Face, Trace. Face." Soos whispered, reminding him that he wasn't wearing his helmet anymore.

One of the drawbacks to wearing a helmet that concealed your facial expressions all the time, was that it was easy to forget that others could actually read your face when you didn't have it on. Trace quickly composed his features into a neutral expression, and headed over towards the stove. He took a bowl and spoon and quickly took some of the thick meaty stew. He moved over to sit down next to Baatir, and his brothers did the same, the four of them moving to sit together at the island, all four facing the door.

"What? I don't even merit an introduction now, buir?" the younger woman asked, giving Tima an insulted look.

"Oh, shut up. You're a big girl. You can introduce yourself." her mother replied.

The young woman rolled her eyes, and sighed.

"No manners in this house, I swear." she muttered, shaking her head. "Welcome home, commandos. I'm Sydel Sova, Baatir's wife and Koje's medic on the ship out there."

She nodded towards the yard and took a sip of the milky green liquid in the glass before her.

"What's that?" Shook asked.

She gave him a confused look.

"What's what?

"What you're drinking."

"Oh, this?" she asked, pointing at the glass. "This my husband's own special Ti'haar blend. Guaranteed to be the strongest drink this side of the planet."

She slid the glass over to where Shook sat, and he took a whiff, wrinkling his nose at the smell. He set the glass back down and slid it back to her.

"I'll pass, thanks. I like having enamel on my teeth." he said, causing Baatir to chuckle.

"Alright. Enough chatter, squad. Eat up." Koje said. "We've got a lot of talking to do, and I'm tired, so we'd best get to it. After you eat we'll go into the den and get your story straightened out."

The four commandos immediately fell silent, and Trace couldn't help sneering at the grin that Baatir favored them with.

"Oooooooh. You guys are in trouble." Sydel said in a sing song voice.

**Key: **

Buy'ce (BOO-shay)- helmet

Haili cetare (HI-lee ket-AH-ray) - Eat up, "Fill your boots"

Mar'e (MAH-ray) - expression of relief, "At Last!"

Osik (OS-eek) - crap (sometimes vulgar)

Kov'nyn (kov-NYEN) - A Keldabe kiss, or a kiss in full armor. Outsiders see it as a greeting by headbutt

Dar'yaim (dahr-YA-eem) - a hell, a place you want to forget

Su'cuy gar (soo-KOOY gar) – friendly greeting, sometimes shortened to "Su'cuy" (lit: "still live," i.e. "So you're still alive.")


End file.
